Tracing Quotations
Groucho Marx? Robert Quillen? Robert O. Ryder? Dorothy Uris? Evan Esar? Agro B. Arlo? Laurence J. Peter? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: The informal term “necking” refers to kissing and caressing amorously. A comedian once said: Whoever called it necking was a poor judge of anatomy. Do you know who crafted this joke? Was it …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Whoever Named It Necking Was a Poor Judge of Anatomy”
Voltaire? Louis Mayeul Chaudon? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The famous French writer Voltaire (François-Marie Arouet) apparently said something like: Life is bristling with thorns. One must travel through them quickly to minimize the pain and harm. Would you please help me to find a citation? Reply from Quote Investigator: Voltaire died in 1778, and …
Arthur Brisbane? Confucius? Kathleen Caffyn? Frederick R. Barnard? Robert Maguire? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: A famous adage highlights the value of illustrations and photographs. Here are four versions: (1) A picture is worth ten thousand words (2) A picture is worth a thousand words. (3) One picture is worth a ten thousand words. (4) One …
Nora Roberts? Eileen Wilks? Lori Avocato? Susan Elizabeth Phillips? Bonnie Hearn Hill? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: When you are attempting to write a book you must move forward and put words on a blank page or screen even if you fear that your output is flawed. Eventually, you will be able to revise and improve …
Continue reading “Writing Advice: I Can Fix a Bad Page. I Can’t Fix a Blank One”
James Baldwin? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: Change is onerous. The prominent writer James Baldwin once constructed a vivid analogy between change and birth. Would you please help me to find a citation? Quote Investigator: In 1977 James Baldwin published an article titled “Every Good-bye Ain’t Gone” in “New York” magazine containing the following passage. Boldface …
Continue reading “Most of Us Are About as Eager To Be Changed as We Were To Be Born”
Buckminster Fuller? Richard Dreyfuss? C. S. Lewis? William Nicholson? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: A prominent futurist once said that our planet did not come with an instruction book. Therefore, we should act carefully while creating our own instruction book for living and flourishing. I think the author of this notion was Buckminster Fuller. Would you …
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Jean-Luc Godard? D. W. Griffith? Evelyn D. Miller? Frederick James Smith? George W. Sears? John Philip Sousa? Abel Gance? Fredric Wertham? Charlie Chaplin? John Boorman? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: A powerful and jaded film director once listed the two crucial ingredients to achieve success: All you need for a movie is a girl and a …
Continue reading “All You Need To Make a Movie Is a Girl and a Gun”
Jean-Luc Godard? Roger Ebert? Gene Siskel? Nancy O’Higgins? Apocryphal Dear Quote Investigator: An influential film critic decided to become a filmmaker. Here are four versions of the explanation provided by the critic for this notable transformation: (1) Instead of writing criticism, I make a film. (2) The only way to criticize a movie is to …
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Wilma Mankiller? Cherokee Precept? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: Everyone faces major setbacks in life. Maintaining a constructive outlook is essential to being resilient and moving forward. The following guidance can be difficult to follow, but it is enormously helpful: No matter what situation you’re in, find something good about it. This advice has been attributed …
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Mark Twain? Albert Einstein? Lee Segall? Lee Segal? J. Millar Watt? John Peer? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: According to a clever quip it is better to have one watch instead of two. The quip has been attributed to humorist Mark Twain, physicist Albert Einstein, broadcaster Lee Segall, and others. Would you please explore this topic? …